MHA orders civil defence drills amid Pak tensions

The exercise will be conducted in 244 'civil defence districts' tomorrow

- ARCHIS MOHAN & SATARUPA BHATTACHARJYA

Amid escalating tensions with Pakistan, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Monday asked several states to conduct mock drills — such as operationalising air-raid warning sirens and training civilians on civil defence to protect themselves in the event of a "hostile attack" — on Wednesday.

The drills include organising a civil-defence exercise and rehearsal across 244 categorised "civil defence districts" in the country.

There will be provisions for crash blackout measures, quickly camouflaging vital plants, and installing and updating evacuation plans.

The ministry said the exercise was planned up to village level and aimed to assess and enhance the readiness of civil-defence mechanisms across all states and Union Territories. The exercise will see the involvement of district authorities, Home Guards, National Cadet Corps, college and school students.

Such a large-scale mock drill is taking place in the country for the first time since the 1971 Bangladesh war, experts said.

The MHA advisory came on a day of hectic developments marked by key meetings that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had. One meeting was with Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, who is understood to have briefed him about the combat readiness of the armed forces.

Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal A P Singh and Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi had met the Prime Minister on Sunday and Saturday, respectively.

During the course of the day, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, on a visit to Islamabad, before he lands in New Delhi later in the week, urged the two neighbours to reduce tensions.